Meteor Showers all year!

[Steve922]

I stayed up until 5 a.m. this morning (I'd booked the morning off work) to watch the Orionids. This completes my first full year of Meteor watching - I started with the Geminids last December.

I thought I'd post a report of an overall summary of the year and then fill in the specific details. Most of my nights on this venture have been planned pretty much the same (excepting the one event for which I was pretty ill.) I chose the peak nights for all the events for which peak ZHR was expected to be in double figures.

My preparation for each shower was the same, aiming to spend the whole night in a chosen spot (according to the particular radiant). I had a few hours napping in the evening before getting set up by around midnight in my comfy(ish) chair, clothes, coffee, music, the works. Then I'd watch until daybreak and take the morning off work to sleep.

Great planning, cionsistant all year and the resualts werre .... Nothing! Nada Zilch. For the whole year, not a single frigging meteor! Lots of cloud, sometimes thick, sometimes patchy, sometimes colourful sometimes grimey and I waited and waited (and sometimes peered desperately into the small gaps) every night for a little clear sky - to see just one. Just one! But no, the shooting stars have not performed for me. Not once.

Here follows my report for the coming 12 months for each of the meteor nights - I'm planning similar ventures all year : Went to the pub, had a good nights sleep and got to work early the next day.

Steve

[nicnac]

i only got 4 this year, one of them a work mate saw too and he was impressed, in the 28 years of his life it was the first one he has ever seen!

it is a shame that most of us dont look up anymore, is it ignorance ??.... i would not hazzard a guess

[dobserver]

You don't have to restrict yourself to the night of the peak of the shower. We saw an amazing amount of the Orionids on 24th and 25th October, when the peak was the 21st. I was observing with my scope and saw 3 or 4 zoom through my FOV as an added bonus

Steph

[Steve922]

Indeed. But I do need to restrict the number of nights I devote all night to meteor-serching - I work for a living. If I can only afford one night per shower, I think the published peak night is the one to go for.

Steve

[Teddy]

No way thats does sound frustrating. I went out for a shower around aug 10th (forgot name) and me and the missus saw two in an hour. but this last one it was total cloud cover for days .

Just a though... i work and i have two kids and mates and missus and blah blah..... but what i tend to do is have 1 - 2 hours around the nights of the peak. Therefore you have different condtions and a reasonable chance to see somethin. This way it does not ruin all the above. may help!

[Doc]

With the weather we have had Steve I admire you for even trying.